Free-Agent Outfielder Melvin Upton Changes First Name Back to B.J.

The Major League Baseball player formerly known as B.J. Upton is once again B.J. Upton.

According to USA Today Sports' Scott Boeck, Upton has decided to ditch the name Melvin in favor of B.J. This comes nearly four years after he initially made the change back to his birth name.

B.J. stands for Bossman Junior, a nod to his father's Bossman nickname.   

Upton discussed the change to his birth name with MLB.com in February 2015 (h/t the New York Post):

"It was the name that was given to me as a kid, so I felt I wanted to go by my real name. Most of my friends call me Mel or Melvin. Nobody really calls me B.J., except at the stadium.

"This has nothing to do with starting a new chapter. I just wanted to. ... Call me what you want, it doesn't matter to me. Obviously, the people I've known my whole life and the people I've grown to know, I don't care [which name they use]. But for the general public, my real name is Melvin and that is [how] I want to be referred to."

Upton was taken with the second overall pick by the then-Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 2002 draft. He made his MLB debut with Tampa Bay in 2004 and has spent 12 seasons in the majors while playing for four teams, hitting .243/.321/.402 with 164 career home runs and 300 stolen bases.

He last appeared in the majors in 2016 as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays. He hit .259 with the San Diego Padres in 2015 and .238 with the Padres and Blue Jays in 2016.

The 34-year-old signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians last offseason and received a spring training invite. However, he was released in March and failed to catch on with another club.

Upton is a free agent. Per Spotrac, he has more than $107 million in career earnings.